Makwan Moloudzadeh was 21-years-old. He was murdered by his butchers inside Kermanshah prison where he was detained after being sentenced to death for “lavat” (sodomy). The boy, according to the Iranian judges, was “guilty” of having loved a peer when he was 13 and having sexual intercourse with him. The execution took place yesterday (December 5th, 2007) in the above-mentioned prison in the north-west of Iran at five in the morning (Iranian time). The sentence was carried out among the total silence of the press, institutions and associations. They did not even trouble to inform Makwan’s lawyer, father and uncle, with whom EveryOne Group (who had just launched the international “hearts campaign” to save Makwan’s life) was in contact with.

“We were devastated to hear the news” say the leaders of EveryOne Roberto Malini, Matteo Pegoraro and Dario Picciau. “We are still receiving hundreds of emails from all over the world in support of the campaign for Makwan’s life; from international political figures, activists and everyday citizens. The news of his death has stunned everyone, because only a few days ago the Iranian Head of the Judiciary, l’Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi had suspended the sentence, manifesting the intention of granting Makwan a pardon”.

You mean Iran goes back on its word? I’m shocked. Yet, potential Presidents-to-be Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama want to negotiate with our enemies who do this, and still the gay community fawns at their feet. Incredible.

And for those slow folks out there, a quick reminder: Iran is not a Christian, nor a Jewish state.

For your viewing and commenting pleasure. Please do not comment unless you watch the entire speech, thank you.

For me…. the most important parts are these:

“It is important to recognize that while differences in theology exist between the churches in America, we share a common creed of moral convictions. And where the affairs of our nation are concerned, it’s usually a sound rule to focus on the latter – on the great moral principles that urge us all on a common course. Whether it was the cause of abolition, or civil rights, or the right to life itself, no movement of conscience can succeed in America that cannot speak to the convictions of religious people.

“We separate church and state affairs in this country, and for good reason. No religion should dictate to the state nor should the state interfere with the free practice of religion. But in recent years, the notion of the separation of church and state has been taken by some well beyond its original meaning. They seek to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of God. Religion is seen as merely a private affair with no place in public life. It is as if they are intent on establishing a new religion in America – the religion of secularism. They are wrong.

“The founders proscribed the establishment of a state religion, but they did not countenance the elimination of religion from the public square. We are a nation ‘Under God’ and in God, we do indeed trust.

“We should acknowledge the Creator as did the Founders – in ceremony and word. He should remain on our currency, in our pledge, in the teaching of our history, and during the holiday season, nativity scenes and menorahs should be welcome in our public places. Our greatness would not long endure without judges who respect the foundation of faith upon which our constitution rests. I will take care to separate the affairs of government from any religion, but I will not separate us from ‘the God who gave us liberty.‘”

And this:

“Americans acknowledge that liberty is a gift of God, not an indulgence of government. No people in the history of the world have sacrificed as much for liberty. The lives of hundreds of thousands of America’s sons and daughters were laid down during the last century to preserve freedom, for us and for freedom loving people throughout the world. America took nothing from that Century’s terrible wars – no land from Germany or Japan or Korea; no treasure; no oath of fealty. America’s resolve in the defense of liberty has been tested time and again. It has not been found wanting, nor must it ever be. America must never falter in holding high the banner of freedom.”

And this:

“It was in Philadelphia that our founding fathers defined a revolutionary vision of liberty, grounded on self evident truths about the equality of all, and the inalienable rights with which each is endowed by his Creator.

“We cherish these sacred rights, and secure them in our Constitutional order. Foremost do we protect religious liberty, not as a matter of policy but as a matter of right. There will be no established church, and we are guaranteed the free exercise of our religion.”

And of course, this:

“Infinitely worse [than the decline of religion in Europe] is the other extreme, the creed of conversion by conquest: violent Jihad, murder as martyrdom… killing Christians, Jews, and Muslims with equal indifference. These radical Islamists do their preaching not by reason or example, but in the coercion of minds and the shedding of blood. We face no greater danger today than theocratic tyranny, and the boundless suffering these states and groups could inflict if given the chance.
“The diversity of our cultural expression, and the vibrancy of our religious dialogue, has kept America in the forefront of civilized nations even as others regard religious freedom as something to be destroyed.

Log Cabin’s latest press release puts me in a bind. On the one hand, I’m delighted that they’re taking on the congressional Democratic leadership for blocking legislation they favor. On the other hand, I oppose the legislation the Democrats are blocking.

There are two things to note in this, the first is about the Democrats. Here, it seems that when push comes to shove, despite the strong support (including financial contributions) they receive from gay organizations and citizens, they won’t go to bat on issues of concern to those groups.

The second is that Log Cabin is criticizing Democrats instead of taking on fellow Republicans. This is something we want to see more of.

While I oppose federal Hate Crimes legislation for a great variety of reasons, it’s nice to see Log Cabin taking the Democrats to task. Kudos to Log Cabin President Patrick Sammon for so quickly criticizing their congressional leadership. Now, let’s see if other gay leaders follow suit.

One thing which struck me when I drove cross country was how few bumper stickers I saw for the current presidential campaign. I did see a number of cars sporting Kerry (and Kerry-Edwards) decals and even (or all delicious ironies, mostly in the Northeast) vehicles with pro-Bush bumper stickers. Indeed, I saw more cars sporting anti-Bush sticker than the combined number of vehicles promoting Democratic presidential candidates.

When I returned to Cincinnati for Thanksgiving, I made a similar observation, precious few bumper stickers for the current campaign, many more so for the previous one. And returning to LA, I see the same thing. Yesterday, when driving all over the city (well, between Culver City and Hollywood), I saw one Obama ’08 bumper sticker and several supporting Kerry. But, there were more anti-Bush bumper stickers than pro-Democratic presidential candidates. Today was more of the same, one “Jail Bush” sticker and an pro-Obama one.

While I have seen a handful of Hillary ’08 bumper stickers, it’s been a while since I’ve seen one in LA.

Now, while we can’t measure the level of a candidate’s support by the number of bumper stickers we see, nor does the relative amount of the various candidates’ bumper stickers accurately reflect their support in the general populace, but the number of bumper stickers does measure the degree of a candidates’ support. That is, they show where the energy, the political passion, is.

For the Democrats, given the number of anti-Bush stickers and those supporting the ticket the president defeated in the previous election, it seems that their energy is still directed against him. Not a good sign for their party’s (eventual) nominee less a year out from the next election. They really hate a guy who can’t run for reelection, whose term expires is just over a year.

The number of Obama stickers seems to reflect the intensity of his support among those backing the Illinois Senator. When I talk to his supporters, their faces light up as they outline their man’s qualities, his charisma and eloquence. They believe he has the potential to unite the country.

The relative paucity of Hillary stickers suggests that while she is her party’s frontrunner, there’s not much enthusiasm for her candidacy. As Toby Harnden, the Washington Bureau Chief for London’s Sunday Telegraphwrote after a cross country trip surveying the American political landscape:

While we found many people who hated Mrs Clinton, those who loved her were few and far between. Certainly, many said they would vote for her, but the reasons cited tended to be her status as the top Democrat, the fact that she was battle-tested against Republicans and – for some women – the fact that she would be the first female president.

In this regard, it seems that Mrs. Clinton is not much different from her husband’s successor in the White House, at least in the latter half of his second term. There are many, many people who hate them, but very few who love them.

Whether or not we’ll see more bumper stickers for the current crop of candidates as we get closer to the actual date of the primaries has yet to be seen. But, from my survey of bumper stickers in recent months, it seems those on the left hate the incumbent president to a greater degree than they love any of the Democrats bidding to succeed him.